Still Mobile Post Sandy

Another iPhone pic today since we still do not have power. This huge limb landed inches from my house. Trust me, it looks much larger in real life.

Post Sandy

Here is an iPhone pic of the sky this morning post hurricane Sandy. We've still had some pouring rain and wind and periods of calm and breaks in the sky. Trees and power lines are down. No power here and it will be days until it is restored. A huge part of a tree is down in the backyard and just missed the house by inches. We are lucky overall!

Hurricane Sandy

Still waiting for landfall. A small limb has snapped off and is balancing on the power line. (My first mobile blog post).

Falling Leaves

As we prepare for Hurricane Sandy, here a two shots taken yesterday in my backyard.  The first shot shows a falling leaf on the bottom left and the second shot shows several falling leaves on the mid to upper right side of the photo.   These shots were taken in manual mode to try to freeze the action of the falling leaves.  It was difficult to get a shot...I used continuous shot as I saw leaves falling out of the corner of my eye since I was using my viewfinder.

The Leaves of Autumn

The leaves of Autumn...

Fountain

A fountain at Eisenhower Park

Another Bird in Flight

                   A red tailed hawk at Eisenhower Park

Jet Blue

Back on September 13, 2012, I posted a shot of a plane that was also Jet Blue but with a different tail design.  I must really like things that fly because I am very captivated by birds and planes!

Autumn is Here

Autumn colors in the park...

Angel in the Park

I've seen this statue in the park several times, but decided to look at it from a new angle.  I like the way the sunlight is  hitting it in several spots while the rest is in shadow.  The angle also makes the definition of the hands more pronounced.  At a later date as I further enhance my editing skills, I may try to remove the little bit of tree on the bottom left side and darken the sky.

Woooo Hoooo!

An even 800 views on my blog today.  Not really sure who has been here since there are not that many comments, but someone is looking!  Hope you are enjoying...I know I am!  This is for you...  

Lone bloom surviving the autumn weather...taken today at Eisenhower Park

                                            ...Thanks for visiting!!!

Rudy

A 70+ degree day near the end of October...what a beauty! Rudy is enjoying the day and sniffing the air!

You Woke Me Up!

I was napping!

STAMPEDE!

Well, kind of...

Naptime

Naptime

Male Downy Woodpecker

Since I hung the suet basket in my back yard, I have seen many more Downy Woodpeckers.  I also saw the male Downy Woodpecker for the first time this past weekend.  He is identified by the red patch at the back of his head.  Although he is a very small bird, the red is really prominent against his black and white feathers.

Upside Down Squirrel

I hung a basket of suet to attract the birdies in my back yard.  It attracted birds as well as some very hungry squirrels. These squirrels will contort any which way to get through the bars to the suet.  Check out this upside down squirrel!  

Dinner is served!

Macro Mode: Fizzy Fruit

I have been trying to get the hang of macro mode on the SX40.  I have just been using the camera in macro mode without the use of any add on filters.  I saw this idea (fizzy fruit) on the net, and I wanted to try it even though I didn't have all of the right equipment for lighting, set-up, etc.  Essentially, what I did was cut several pieces of fruit (lemon and lime) and put them into a wine glass with seltzer.  I shot outdoors for better lighting and used manual mode.  All shots were enhanced with GIMP, and one was color enhanced.

Marine Nature Study Area: Part VI

Just Chillin'

Marine Nature Study Area: Part V

Some sights at the Marine Nature Study Area:

An odd looking boat

Kayak shot in color accent mode

Osprey perch with nobody home

Marine Nature Study Area: Part IV

Yes, that's right...more birds!  They just seem to be everywhere I go!  This first picture is of the Kingfisher.  This was a first sighting for me.  I saw it quite far away and was lucky to get one shot of it looking to the side.  The other shots all got the back of his head.  A little blurry, but still glad I got it!

Marine Nature Study Area: Part III

Some foliage we encountered:

We were very shocked to see cactus growing on Long Island...but there it was!  

You an read more about this cactus here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opuntia

Above is a shot of droplets of water on a lilly pad.

Marine Nature Study Area: Part II

Here are some of the areas we saw at the Marine Nature Study Area:

Beach Area

Marsh Area

Woodland Area

Shore Area

Marine Nature Study Area: Part I

This past Saturday, Cindy and I ventured to the Marine Nature Study Area in Oceanside.  I think that aside from the opportunity to see some wildlife, the shore, and take some pix, we were intrigued by the boardwalks that let you walk out into the marsh.

We walked out onto this boardwalk.  It was a really cool experience to walk out into the  marsh.

One of the paths that we walked

An old path not in use now

Here are two links to learn more about the Marine Nature Study Area:

http://www.estuary.cog.ny.us/access_guide/site35.html

http://toh.li/preserves-and-nature-areas/marine-nature-study-area

To be continued tomorrow...

My Backyard

Just a couple of pix today from my backyard today.  Yes, BIRDS again!  Well, they are fascinating and cute.  

Downy Woodpecker

Bird on Post

  

Stay tuned starting tomorrow for pix from yesterday's trip to the Marine Nature Study Area in Oceanside.

Yellow Butterfly

I guess I was most amazed that this butterfly had huge green eyes.

The Rock Pigeon

The Rock Pigeon is the common pigeon that we are used to seeing every day.

I saw this particular Rock Pigeon at Levy Preserve.

Check out this website for some Cool Facts about the Rock Pigeon:

http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Rock_Pigeon/lifehistory

The Colour Blue Photo Theme

I participate in a photography page on FB (Fatdragon100), and the theme for photos this week is 'The Colour Blue Photo Theme.'  

Here is my submission:  

Below is the original photo.  It was taken at the Central Park Zoo in full daylight with a Canon Powershot SD550.  I edited the photo in GIMP by adding the lens flare in the top right hand corner and enhancing the blue in the photo to match the theme.  I think the lens flare goes well with the highlight on the side of the bird's head, and I think the added 'blueness' makes the photo pop and gives it a fantasy like quality.  I really like how it came out.